Tyler Goodjohn will have his last dance in Leeds this weekend and also sees Paulie Malignaggi bowing out from competing in combat sports as well. Tyler Goodjohn will battle Paulie Malignaggi at BKB 47: Leeds Brawl 2 on October 18th. Tyler Goodjohn appeared on Bare Knuckle Bowker to touch on his highly hyped retirement bout as the former BKB champion and BKFC title challenger throws down with the multi-time gloved boxing champ, Malignaggi.
When touching on the dual pronged meaning of his social media post that referred to this intriguing headliner being the last dance in Leeds, Tyler Goodjohn said [via 
"I mean look, it was always going to be my last fight, you know. I'm bowing out and it's going to be Paulie's last fight as well. I mean look, he signed a three fight deal but, you know, he's not getting past the first fight. So it's going to be retirement. It's going to be a retirement do for both of us, you know. It's probably never happened before where both are going to retire on the same night. Yeah, he's definitely not going to want to carry on with the bare knuckle journey after this fight."
"And I'm done. I've got nothing else to prove. You know, I'm a pioneer in this game. I think slowly people are starting to see it now. I opened the door for everyone. I went to America. I've done all the madness, you know, the COVID stuff. I'm starting to get my respect now."
"It's not often I can get into a room or a street and people don't recognize now. So, you know, this fight against Paulie; As Paulie said when we had the face off, he wants to give me the exposure. I've not had the exposure that I really should have had in my career. So, yeah, it's a nice one to bow out on."
When addressing the pieces of fighting a former IBF junior welterweight and WBA welterweight champion in terms of how further delving into how much this is an ideal fight to bow out on, Tyler Goodjohn stated [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
"There wasn't a fight as a, you know, boxer that I missed. Paulie, I was a big fan of Paulie, you know. The fight; you know, boxing fans will remember the night he fought Miguel Cotto with a broken jaw or a cheekbone or whatever it was. Like the guy is very, very tough. The guy is very, very good and I actually just put a picture of his resume out and like he's fought everyone, man."
"Everyone, like and I salute that, you know, because that's how I like to be in my career. Like that's; you know, he's obviously been a two-weight world champion, but he's had a lot of lows. He's lost a lot of fights, you know, but he's always come back and fought the best. So you really, you know; you really have to take your hat off to people like that [laughs]."
Tyler Goodjohn, the multiple levels of BKB related closure here, and his retirement aims
The former BKB champion previously left the promotion on bad terms as he pursued opportunities with BKFC. Upon returning to an ever growing BKB fold, Goodjohn has since made amends with promotional figureheads Jim Freeman and Joe Brown after having some cross words from the prior regime. When touching on how this final prizefight for him seems like it's creating closure in a multitude of regards, Tyler Goodjohn quipped [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
"Yeah, definitely. You know, Jim [Freeman] and Joe [Brown] have been really good. They've stuck to everything they've said, you know, they've been really good. I can't; no complaints at all. Then obviously, to give me this fight, the exposure. It's just a massive fight to go out on. It's great. I've not been totally honest with people how badly like, you know, my hands and my body's been because I want it so badly, but at 34, people have got to remember there's a lot of life [laughs] to live after fighting. You know, this is going to be my ninth bare knuckle fight."
"But people forget that I fought at a very high level as a professional boxer and an amateur as well. You know, I had a lot of fights. I had 69 amateur fights and I had 19 professional boxing matches and like 10 of them were; 10 of them were like title fights, you know what I mean? 10 rounds, grueling 10 round title fights. So I've been up and about [laughs], up and about. On top of that, all the sparring and all the stuff, you know, all the behind the scenes that no one sees."
Tyler Goodjohn continued, "It's, 34 years of age. Maybe I could go on another couple of years but for what? I'm not really; and truly, after this fight against Paulie, what more can I do? Like and without being too disrespectful, people go, oh, be BKB champion again, I've done it. I done it in a historic fight against Sean George and even the champion now at my weight."
"Liam Rees like, good fighter, champion, all this, but like no one knows who he is, you know? So, it's like, after this Paulie fight, I could walk away and I want to get into coaching and who knows? Look, I could bring another bare knuckle superstar along."
"But, you know, like I say, as a 34 year old man now, let's face it, I'm on the decline. The scar tissue on my face is a joke. So, I'm having to fight most; well, my last three fights, pretty much blind really because the blood and the scar tissue damage. Yeah [laughs], I just don't really want it for; I've got this last one. I can go, you know what, all in. Let's go. But there's got to come a time."
Tyler Goodjohn continued, "There's got to come a time. And if the fighter can come up; it's not often the fighter comes up with that. Do you know what I mean? Usually it's someone else like trying to tell, persuade someone to retire and all that, but I feel it. I felt it in training for this fight. I mean I've had a lot going on in my personal life, a lot, lots. I'm very proud of myself how I've just got on with it."
"But I've not been enjoying it. The discipline side of me is incredible and everything gets done impeccably. Do you know what I mean? Like to the max. But I'm just not loving it. I just, I haven't got the love for it anymore. You know, it hurts [laughs]. Training hurts. What people forget is as well as a professional, we're not training to keep fit and and training at 70%. We're there, you know, I can only speak for myself, but I imagine most professional combat sportsmen, when you go into training, you're giving 110% every time."
Tyler Goodjohn continued, "I'm training twice a day, six days a week. People will be like, I'm my own worst enemy when I should take rest and everything else. But you know, when I'm switched on to a fight, man, I'm locked in. It's an obsession. Again, I think most other fights was; fighters will say the exact same thing. It's an obsession."
"So yeah, the last 16 weeks have been hard with everything that's going on outside in my life and, you know, in the mix of that, I'm also fighting a guy who's a former two-weight world champion. So discipline, man. Super disciplined."